Early industrial automation systems were purely hardware-based, comprising complicated networks of relays, switches, timers, logic gates, and other such elements. With the advent of the programmable logic controller (PLC), many of these cumbersome hardware elements were replaced by equivalent software solutions, significantly reducing the size and complexity of automation systems. Over time, more aspects of the industrial automation process have come to rely on software-based solutions, including visualization (e.g., human-machine interfaces), control loop tuning, motor drive configuration, lot tracking, historical data collection, production reporting, etc. Moreover, recently developed software products have made it possible to integrate plant floor operations with higher level business considerations, allowing both levels to more easily coordinate their activities to achieve desired goals of the business enterprise as a whole. Such software products include enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, manufacturing execution system (MES) software, and other such applications.
As new industrial software products are introduced into the market place, there is an increasing reliance on such industrial software applications for the day-to-day operation of modern industrial automation systems and associated business planning.